9/11 flag returned to victim's sister after it was stolen

It’s not very often a thief will return a stolen item, but one family got a surprise when a stolen flag was returned to their doorstep. This isn’t just any flag, though. The flag belonged to a family who lost a relative on 9/11.

According to CNN, Melissa Ielpi-Brengel’s brother, Jonathan Ielpi, was part of the New York City Fire Department when he died during the attacks. The flag that was given to her family had flown over ground zero during the efforts to clean up the devastation caused by the attacks.

When Ielpi-Brengel found the flag, it was folded neatly on her doorstep with a note saying, “I am so sorry, I had no idea.”

Ielpi-Brengel said the flag would be flown during “certain times of the year just to remember.”

A few days before the Fourth of July, she discovered the flag was missing and she went onto her social media page in order to plead for help in locating it.

The September 11th Families Association, as an honor toward her brother and his sacrifice on the tragic day, gave the flag to the family.

The Associated Press reported the flag is now on the porch where it belongs at Ielpi-Brengel’s home in Long Island, New York.